No plans to take double-decker buses off Canadian roads

Investigators examine the site of the fatal bus and train crash that killed six people in Ottawa, Thursday, September 19, 2013. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Fred Chartrand

Canadian public transit companies will continue to use double-decker buses despite Wednesday’s tragic bus-train collision in Ottawa.

“We have no concerns about the safety of our double-decker buses,” said Vanessa Thomas, spokesperson for Toronto’s Metrolink.

“The investigation of the crash in Ottawa involving the OC Transpo bus and VIA Rail is ongoing and the cause of the crash has not yet been determined.”

The collision, involving a northbound OC Transpo double-decker bus and a westbound Via Rail train, left six people dead. Another 34 people were injured.

The bus, an Enviro 500 double-decker built by UK company Alexander Dennis, is the only double-decker make used by Canadian public transit companies. The bus is just over 40 feet long and can carry approximately 90 passengers – 82 seated and 9 standing – more than either the 40-foot standard bus or the 60-foot accordion bus.

Its ability to carry more passengers makes it a popular choice in regions where demand for public transit is high. In addition to the 75 Enviro 500 buses owned by Ottawa’s OC Transpo, the double-decker buses are also used by GOTransit in Toronto (47 buses), and BC Transit in Victoria (30 buses) and Kelowna, B.C (10 buses).

All three transit companies have said they will continue to use the double-decker buses. There are also no plans to review the use of the double-decker buses at this time, company spokespersons told iPolitics Thursday.

“Certainly as a transit community we are saddened and there was nothing but talk about what happened in Ottawa yesterday,” said BC Transit Spokesperson Meribeth Burton.

Meanwhile, Strathcona County Transit – near Edmonton, Atla – has purchased 14 Enviro 500 buses. Those buses won’t be on the roads, though, until January 2014.

The company will, however, be keeping a close eye on the Transportation Safety Board (TSB) investigation into Wednesday’s bus-train collision, Director Matthew Carpenter said.There are currently no concerns about the buses’ safety, Carpenter added, a position reiterated by Ontario’s Ministry of Transport.

In an email, a spokesperson for the department said the ministry was “unaware of any safety issues related to the brakes on double-decker buses.”

On Wednesday, OC Transpo General Manager John Manconi told reporters the bus company would continue to use its 75 double decker buses – in service since October 2012.

“Unless we hear anything from any of the investigating authorities that [the double-decker buses] should not be out there, we will continue to use the double-deckers accordingly,” he said.

Eleven TSB investigators are currently combing the crash site – near the Fallowfield transit station in Barrhaven – for clues on what caused the collision.The black boxes from the train and the bus were retrieved Thursday afternoon. The data is currently being recovered and examined by TSB officials.